Friday September 13, 2013No. 9 Florida soccer hands Minnesota first loss of season

A
pair of second half goals from freshman Savannah
Jordan gave the No. 9 Florida soccer team a 2-0 win over
previously undefeated Minnesota Friday evening at the James G. Pressly Stadium.

After a scoreless opening half, Jordan needed
just two minutes and a tick to put the Gators up 2-0. The first goal started when
junior Lauren
Silver, from in the Florida half, sent the ball to just above
the UM box. Then it was a foot race between Jordan and a Gopher defender.
Jordan won control and sent the ball to the far post corner just before a
second UM defender looked to end the play. Then passes from sophomore Lindsey
Cooper to senior Maggie
Rodgers resulted in Jordan receiving the ball inside the right
side of the box. The shot she took to the far post was touched by the diving
Gopher goalkeeper Tarah Hobbs, but the momentum of Jordan’s right-footed shot
carried it on where it kicked off the far post into the goal at 65:07.

GATOR PERFORMANCE NOTES:

·Just
seven matches into her Gator career and Jordan now has three multi-goal
matches. She is the first Gator to have three multi-goal matches through a
season’s first seven matches. She opened 2013 with a pair of goals versus
Florida Gulf Coast and then posted a hat-trick versus Oregon State.

·Only
one other Gator has scored eight goals through a season’s opening seven matches
– Danielle
Fotopoulos in 1998

·Freshman
Nora
Neset Gjøen made the start tonight in goal and earned her first solo
shutout of her collegiate career.

RECORDS: Florida (6-1, 0-0
SEC); Minnesota (6-1, 0-0 Big Ten).

THE SERIES: This was the first
meeting between Florida and Minnesota.

QUOTESOn
tonight’s match:

“I
think that we knew that this was going to be a hard game just because our
styles are so different. We knew this was going to be a game where we had to
really get ahold of the game and play the way we wanted to play and for long
stretches we did that. I think that was the difference in the end. They had to
chase a lot, they got pretty tired in the second half and we were able to take advantage
of it.” –
UF coach Becky Burleigh

How
stressful is it to come into the second half and wait that long for them to
start scoring?

“It
was not so stressful because our defense was playing really well and they
really weren’t having any good looks. That makes us feel secure that we can
just continue to have chances. It wasn’t too end-to-end, I think we were sort
of dominating the action. But still, it’s really nice one you get that first
one in.” – UF coach Becky Burleigh

How
do you feel about your performance overall tonight?

“I
think in the first half it’s always hard because they come out defensive-
minded. Like really ready to defend the whole team. I got a little frustrated
in the first half. My teammates were playing me amazing balls and I was unlucky
finishing them, but in the second half it opened up a lot for me. My teammates
continued to give me those balls. I guess my luck came, got a couple goals in
the second half so it was good.” – freshman Savannah Jordan

How
did Minnesota’s high defensive line affect you guys offensively?

“We’ve
been practicing it all week because we knew, watching scouting reports, they
played a really high line. After watching them, I think our team executed what
we were trying to do and it affected us a little bit because we had to play
more direct just because there were a lot of through balls. A lot of running
off the ball, so I think that was a major thing, but I think we did well at
executing it.” - freshman Savannah Jordan

Was
there a mindset change in the second half?

“I
think, for me personally, I just had to, I guess, take a breath and pretend I
was starting a new game because I knew in the first half I was a little
frustrated. Unlucky finishes. I think in the second half I kind of reset and re-focused.
I think our team did that as well, kind of took a breath and a step back and
really came out in the second half as playing our game, not so much theirs. I
think that paid off.” - freshman Savannah Jordan

How
did it feel to get that first goal?

“It
was like a release of stress and everything. I felt more relaxed and it was so
much easier to play after that, and I could feel more coming. I had the second
one right after that and I felt more coming and a lot relaxed. It helped me
play better so it was good.” - freshman Savannah Jordan

And
hear from Gator goalkeeper Nora Neset Gjøen

How does it feel to finally come back from
your concussion?

“It was nice. It felt like a really long time
being out because time moves really slowly when you can’t do anything. It’s
nice to finally be back on the field.” – freshman goalkeeper Nora Neset Gjøen

Does it give you confidence that you could
complete your saves and keep a clean sheet for the team?

“It’s nice. Stats are nice, but basically
it’s just about winning for me. I don’t really care if I have a shutout or if
we win 5-4 as long as we win. I think we did pretty well today, fighting it all
the way out.” – freshman goalkeeper Nora Neset Gjøen

WORTH NOTINGThe
assist on the Gators’ first goal came from the foot of junior Lauren Silver– it
was the fourth assist of the season and that total gives her a career season
high…the assist on Jordan’s second goal was the second of the season for
Rodgers and the first as a Gator for Cooper…the shutout was Florida’s fourth
consecutive…the two goals surrendered were the most of the season for the
Gophers…all-time, Florida is now 6-0 in matches played on a Friday the 13th.

UP NEXT:

The Gators finish
non-conference play Sunday when they play at South Florida (4-1-2, 0-0
American). Match time is set for 6 p.m. at the Corbett Stadium in Tampa. The Bulls
lost their first match of the season Thursday in Columbia, S.C., falling 1-0 to
No. 18 South Carolina.